Free-wheel hub for bicycles.



No- 8B2,126. PATENTED MAR. 17, 1908. G. 0. RYDBERG. FREE WHEEL HUB FOR BIGYGLEB.

APPLICATION FILED NOV, 12, 190'].

(ARL OSRAR RYDBERU, OF ttfj ll'lliOltG, SWEDEN FREE-WHEEL HUB Fora BICYCLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 17, 1908.

application filed November 12, 1907. Serial No. 401.788.

.T 0 all whom may concern:

Be it known that-I, CARL OsKAR RYnBERo, residing at Goteborg, Sweden, have invented new and useful Improvements in Free-\Vheel trating the best practical embodiment of my invention known to me. Figs. 2,3 and 4, are detail views hereinafter referred to. Fig. 5 is a detail section bf the endwise mov able sleeve 16, taken in the plane indicated by the line A-B of Fig. 1.

Similar numerals designate corresponding parts in all of the views of the drawings.

The inside of the hub body 1 is cylindrical, and said body has at-i ts ends anti-friction balls 2, 3, through which it rotates on the one-side against a cone 4, which carries the chain wheel ,5, and on the opposite side against a cone 7 on the axle 6, which axle is fixed to the frame of the bicycle. The chain wheel 5, which, as usual, is actuated from thepedals through chain gearing, can together with its cone be turned round the axle U.-

. During the propulsion of the pedals the hub body revolves on the fixed bearing 8 with its balls 8 The cone 4 is partly surrounded by asleeve 9, arranged to be moved towards the cone 4 by means of a thread-shaped ball bearing 10, arranged between the cone and sleeve. The out-er side of the,sleeve 9 is coned towards both ends thereof, as indi cated by 11 and. 12, with a cylindrical between zone, which is surrounded by a spring 12", Figs. 1 and 2, which isslightly pressed against the interior surface of the hub body 1 in order that thefriction between the spring and the hub body may prevent the cone 4,. when rotating, carrying the sleeve 9 With it. 7 V

The oneconical end 11 of the sleeve 9 fit" into a conical surface 13'inside of the hub body 1 with which it can be brought into contact .when wanted. The cone 7 is connected with the bicycle frame through an arm 11-, which receives projections 15 of the said cone to prevent same from turning. The inner end of'the cone ,7 is extended to form a cvlinthe hub body 1 reduced to nothing dcr 16, having longitudinal slots 17, Figs. 1. and arrs'ingcd at regular intervals, which slots do not reach to the ends of thc cylinder. A-nuniber .of rings (live on the drawing) is placed. round the cylinder 16, which rings 18, 19, 20, 21, 22 are of the same size and rectangular in cross-section and are divided each one into as many segments as there are slots 17. Each of these scgincnts is in its center provided with a hccl 23, Fig. i, directed radially towards the center and fitting into one of'the. slotsv 17. The surface of said heels, which faces in\vard,'is sloped, Fig. 1, so that when. the rings are placed side by side with each heel in its proper slot 17, their sloped surfaces form together an inclined plane or a wedge 2 which fills up the slot 17.

in a circular channel in one side of each ring is placed a spring 25, which tcnds to draw the di'l'l'crmit scgmcnts of the ring towards thc ccntcr. Thc wedges 24 formed by the hee s 22 engage with. an exterior-lytapcrcd sleeve 2Q movablc cmluisc on the axle (if The smaller end of said tapered sleeve faces towards the cone 7, nishcd with a flange 2T, \\hilc the opposite end is provided with a flange 28 the interior surface of which is coned and fitted to the cone 12 ofthc slcevct), "with-n hich it can he engaged when required. The llungc 27 is provided. Fig. 3, wit slots for thc ucdgcs 24', near thellangc 27. 'lhc slots 25) do not reach quite down to the concd surface of the sleeve 26, and conscrpicntly hccls 2h nrcprovidcd with hooks which rest on the cylinder '16. The heels thns prevent the sleeve 26 from revolving on the shaft. A spiral spring 30 lzetvcenth'c ljotlom of the cylinder 16 and the'llangc 2T kccizs the slccve 213 away from the l ned cone 7, so that the scgmcnts of the rings 1%22 are drawn together towards the center by their springs 25, and their pressure against the inner surface of The dill'ercnt rings IS -22 are kept close to each other by a stop-nut 31 at the end of the c vl indcr 16, \\hich stopnut also prevents the spring 25 of the innermost ring from falling out of its channel. I

The working of my improved hub is as follows: hen the chain wheel 5 rotates in a forward dircction the sleeve .1 by mcans of [he thread-shaped ball-lvcarin'g l0 screws il'scll' outward until its conc ll engages with thc cone lit of thc hub l:od l, and the l'riction so pnnluccd, fol'ccs thc whccl.. to adand fin 4O tudinally slotted cylinder disposed in hub body, a ring surrounding said cylindethe bicycle. is still running on, the wheeltends to bring the sleeve 9 to revolve on account of the engagement between the two cones, but then the sleeve 9 screws itself'inward whereby the cones are disengaged and the wheel continues to rotate freely on the balls 2 andB. If then the pedals with the chain .Wheel are propelled in the opposite 10 direction, the sleeve 9..hy reason of the thread-shaped ball-hearing moves laterally against the sleeve. 26 so that its coned surface l2 becomes pressed into the cone 28, and, ifthis motion is continued, lorces'the sleeve 26 against the cone 7. The conical surface of the. sleeve 26 then actuates the edges 24 so that the segments of the rings v 1822 are pressed outward against the snrface of the hub liody' and produce such a 20 strong friction against the said Lodv that tlie'n'heel is braked. "here are no stiff parts that keep the slee e 9 when shifted from movingto stopping. out this is done by the mere friction partly at the cone and partly at the spring l2", in consequence whereof a soft and dangerless converting of the driving into stop takes place it the bicycle is suddenly ltraked. The threadshaped halhhearing 10 diminishes the dead 30. resistance to the lowest possil' degree and the arrangement of the brakes 18--22 makes the'hraking powerful and quite safe.

Having descrilied my invention, rs claim and desire to secure by .Letters 1? 1s:

ha; atent.

1. In a hic vele,-the combination "with polling means'arranged inside the hnlrhods and controlled by the rnlei of a fixed, loi" and divided into as many segiinents as there are slots in the evhnder and having on each segment a heel disposed in one of the slots and terminating in sloped end Which forms a. Wedge, a tapered sleeve movable endvnse in the cylinder and engaged nith the ends of the heels, a sleeve movahle end ise in the hub body and having a bone at one end to engage said body andarranged when moved in one direction to engage the hnh body and When moved in the opposite direction to push the tapered sleeve againstthe tapered- -ends of the 'heelsw'on: the segments to force the latter outward, and means intermediate the Wheelpropelling means and the said coned sleeve for shifting the latter.

2. In'a bic'vele. the combination with sl l-el-eeve, and a spring d g the channel of the ring. ln h c cle, the coinlrination'of a v el li, body, a l sted cone .end of the body and having a late.

driving-Wheel hub body, and wheel pro in;

and

drivin -wheel huh lied and Wheel re n .7 7 l 1 pelnng means arranged inside the one oody and controlled by the rider; of device mevable radially toward and from the halo body and held against turning with the huh body and having an invv ardly extending heel terminating in beveled end an exteriorly tapered, ei'nlwise-movahle sleeve said beveled end, a second endwise niovanle leeve having a cone to the hub hotly and. arranged to he shifted in one director;

to engage the hub hody and also arm-m r:d-

vided into inents and the se one ded 1th proiecting heels inc cylinder and term an exteriorl y tapered said beveled ends,

'ision forming slotted cylinder, i zrposed between. said eylindei the huh lzed and having heels dis r osel the sh'itswzln the eylind and terminating beveled ends, an endwise movable taperedeve ei'igagin said beveled ends, a rotar cone disposed inthe opp'iisite end of the l hody, a sleeve. surroui'iding the latter :0 e and arranged vvl'ien shifted in'onedireetion to'lfrietionalljy" engage the hub body and when shifted in the opposite direction topush the first mentioned sleeve against the beveled ends of the segment heels, and a thread-shaped, ball bearing interposed between the ri'itarv cone and the second nil-en- :tioned sl v s. infill}? whereof I have hereunto nee oi two n1 is il'lnnomi, 

